


Don't waste your tears on me

by MelTheSugarBug



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Iron Man - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Crying, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Prequel, Soulmate-Identifying Timers, Tony being a reckless idiot, Tony being a total sap who spoils his soulmate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-12
Updated: 2016-07-12
Packaged: 2018-07-23 12:41:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7463697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelTheSugarBug/pseuds/MelTheSugarBug
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>5 times Tony made his soulmate cry and one time she made him cry</p>
            </blockquote>





	Don't waste your tears on me

**Author's Note:**

> This is a prequel to how to date a superhero erre heroes. I had tons of fluffy ideas anf i wanted to give them a bit of a backstory togehter so enjoy :D

The first time he made her cry, he didn't even know her. She told him the story of back when his countdown had gone red when he had been in Afghanistan. She had a break down right in the middle of her class when she finally noticed the mark going red. Even if she didn't know him yet, the stress of knowing that her soulmate was in danger was too much to take. She told him that she had prayed every night, even if she wasnt a religious person, for him to come out safe and sound. It had worked, more or less but he appreciated the sentiment. 

Their bond had been strong from the start, as it always was with someone first soul mark. When you had more then one, the strongest bond was established with the first mark that started it's countdown. That's why she felt pain in her chest as if it was her that had the car battery carved into her own sternum, which caused her many sleepless night, wondering if that was what he felt. 

She had cried in relief when the countdown turned green, finally reassured that he was out of harm ways. 

 

The second time was when her mark turned red again and that was because the palladium was slowly poisoning him.   
She had flown to Malibu and even called Happy to come and get her at the aiport. She came flying into his lab like a bat out of hell, her face absolutly heart-broken. 

'your dying?!' She had cried, her chest heaving with emotions. He knew that she was holding back tears at how her voice was breaking and tears clung to her eyelashes, gradually slipping down her reddened cheeks. 

He tries to not look guilty as he replaced the reactor back into his chest , having just replaced the burned core not even 5 minutes ago. He tried to hide the black tattoos that surrounded the arc reactor by quickly pulling on his tank top, but it was too late. She saw and walked over slowly, eyes fixated on the reactor,making him feel a tad self-conscious. 

'are those these the reason why your mark went red?' She asked shakily, coming toe to toe with him, her droopy doe eyes looking up at him. His heart squeezed painfully in his chest, she looked like a kicked puppy. 

He pursed his lip, his fingers drumming a beat onto the glass of the reactor.   
't-the palladium is slowly poisoning me...' he let it out in one breath, feeling as if a small part of the weight on his shoulders was lifted.   
'what?' she squeaked, her face scrunching up, more tears spilling down her cheeks. 

Oh no, he didn't know what to do with women who cried, Tony felt incredibly powerless in the face of his crying soulmate. 

'h-hey Doddy,please, don't cry ' he begged weakly, raising his arms as if to hug her but ended up flapping them uselessly. ''I'll find a solution, you know I will' He tried to reassure. Hopefully before he keels over due to his palladium poisoning. 

A sob escaped her ,shaking her whole body and made his heart squeeze painfully. He gave an agitated sigh and gathered her into his arms. She instantly clung to him, burying her nose into his shoulder , her arms wrapping around his back tightly, her delicate hands bunching up his tank top. 

He held her as she cried, the fabric of the tank top and the skin of his shoulder progressively becoming wet. He whispered soothing words into her ear, promising her that he would get better. Eventually...

 

The third time he made her cry was probably when he showed up unnacounced at her prom. 

Tony knew the date of prom night and had adjusted his schedule after confirming that she would attend the event. He wanted to surprise her. He knew how she loved surprises and he felt as if this one would be a good one  
He knew that she didnt have a partner to go to the prom with. Not that she would need any when he arrived. 

He felt like a young vigorous teen again, the memories of his own prom only distant memories now.   
He even had gotten her that cliche flower wristband and kept himself updated on the color of her dress so he could wear a matching tie. He found pink quite fetching on him actually. 

Tont wondered why he was doing all this... She was his soulmate for one but he harbored platonic feelings for her, well he tried to tell himself that. The teen had wormed her way into his heart far too easily, with her silly ways and giggles. He wanted to contest what Pepper told him before he left but he found himself loss for word. 

'give it a rest Tony, you know that you like her far more than just as a friend' the strawberry blond woman had said with a knowing smile. 

And he did,he freaking did, but she was so young, it felt kind of wrong but if she was willing to have him,he'd at least wait till she was officially an adult to make any advances, for his own peace of mind. 

 

Now here he was, sitting in a rented car in the parking of a swanky hotel of her hometown where the prom took place. He saw limos ,fancy cars and even two girls on their horses. He almost felt like a creep being there. 

He knew it was her when she came out of an old 1980 silver Crysler. Her dark hair(at the time, he didnt know why she kept changing her hair color like that) up in an elegant updo, light make-up on her face. The top of the dress was a high neck beaded halter top in a sheer material,revealing a sweetheart neckline bodice underneath. The skirt was high low in pearl pink with a small train that dragged smoothly behind her. 

He had secretly offered her the dress, he couldnt help himself ,he had wanted to spoil her. He would of offered much more but Pepper intervened, so he wouldnt overwhelm her with his even well intentioned,gifts. 

He was surprised as to why she didn't have a partner. She was gorgeous, in her own way. If he had been a teen , he would of made sure that she was his girlfriend. 

She seemed to have gathered into her small group of friends,merely chatting. Tony was progressively growing cold feet. No he couldn't just leave, he had made it this far, he couldnt turn back now. Man up Stark. 

He slipped on his shades and adjusted his tie and made sure that everything was in place by taking a glance in the rear view mirror. He took a breath and let it out with a whoosh before snatching the flower from the passenger seat. 

He hopped out of the car and locked it with the remote over his shoulder. He strutted forward confidently, giving smiles to the girls ans boys who stopped in their track to stare. Some seemed to be whispering to each other. 

Tony nearly pissed his pants when a teen suddenly appeared infront of him,looking over excited.

'You're Iron Man ' the teen stage-whispered as if to keep it a secret, eyes bright with awe. Tony flashed him his winning smile, subtly glancing over the kid's shoulder to catch glimpses of Melody but he only saw the pink trail dissapear as she entered the hotel. 

He held back a grimace and turned back to the kid when he adressed him, plastering the smile back onto his face. 

' would you mind signing this?' the kid asked handing over a picture, which seemed more like a drawing, of him as Iron Man . Fan art. Melody's small voice supplied in his head. He coughed awkwardly and took the pen the kid was handing over.   
'love the artwork kid, its very...ressembling' Tony said ,managing to be polite about it. The artwork was truly great. Him, in his Iron Man armor with a ton of women worshipping him at his feet. The artwork was so realist that he thought that he had the armor right infront of him. The kid seemed to be ready to explode with joy. 

'thank you so much Mr Stark! It means the world to me' the teen gushed, a bright a smile appearing on his face, revealing shiny braces. Tony found himself smiling genuinely this time, the kid's happiness affecting him. 

'now if you dont mind-' Tony paused waiting for the kid to tell him his name before continuing' I have someone that i need to meet, it was nice meeting you Jacob'Tony said, slipping his business card in the kids breastpocket and patted his shoulder before slipping away. 

Just as he entered, he only saw a sliver of pink dissapear. Melody was being strangely elusive tonight or he just had the worse timing ever. He took a breath before adjusting his suit jacket. Why was he so nervous? He could dominate a crowd with just a smile and yet, here he was, as nervous as a teen who didnt want to be caught doing things they shouldn't and he knew that feeling oh so well. 

He flashed his pass at the lady who gave passes to the students who were about to go into the ballroom. Pepper had made sure that he had a pass, to show that he had indeed bought a ticket to attend. The students had been allowed to brings friends or family as long as they got their tickets, they could attend. 

 

He held back a grimace at how drab the decoration was. Simple lights were hug from the ceiling and cliches confettis and balloons. He reminded himself that he was here for his soulmate. He would endure anything for her. 

He made a beeline for the bar, who served alcoholic drinks for the 18 +. They didnt request an ID as he ordered a scotch. As he waited for his drink, he leaned back agaisnt the bar casually, eyes roaming the growing crowd. 

Tony was on his third scotch and still nothing. He had asked around but no one seemed to know her. 'Melody who?' They would say. Melody wasn't kidding when she said she was invisible in the eyes of her fellow peers. 

Trendy music had started to play, the wiggling bodies making it even more difficult to find his tiny soulmate in the crowd. Numerous daring young girls had asked him to dance but he declined and settled on nursing his scotch. He made another round of the room, the chaperones eyeing him suspiciously. 

Then he finally found her. She was sitting at a table, all alone,looking dejected as she looked at the dancing couples enviously. He set his glass on a nearby table after downing it in one swift swig,barely wincing as the alcohol burned its way down his throat. 

He stopped near her table, waiting for her to adknowledge him. He saw her frown, probably wondering who was lurking near her table. Then she looked up at him and her face lit up like a thousand sun. 

'Tony?!' she exclaimed in surprise, quickly standing in her seat and threw herself into his arms. He caught her and twirled her around, her giggles filling his ears and filling his chest with warmth. 

'what are you doing here?' She asked,speaking loudely over the music, her smile still firmly in place. 

' i wanted to surprise you' he said loudly,returning her radiant smile tenfold. He cupped his hands on her delicate shoulders , the warmth spreading further in his chest. 'you look beautiful tonight' 

A blush coloured her cheeks prettily as she ducked her head shyly. 'thank you' she responded bashfully, giving a nervous smile. 

He reached into his pocket for the flower he had tucked into the pocket of his suit. He opened it and gently took out the pink flower and offered it to her with a hopeful look into his eyes. She gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. 

' Doddy, will you be my partner for the prom?' He asked, making her laugh and nod her head vigorously. He took her delicate hand, each tip of her fingers decorated with artfully decorated nails. He kissed the back of her hand and slipped the flower onto her wrist. She sniffled , her eyes blinking rapidly. He held a hand in a placating gesture.   
'oh please dont cry on me, think about your make-up, you'll ruin it, i didn't buy you expensive make-up for you to ruin it over lil ol me' He said, his expression clearly uncomfortable. 

Now, that came out a tad insensitive but Melody knew how he worked and laughed it off , wiping at her eyes delicatly. 

Tony looked at Melody who ducked her head bashfully , fiddling with the hem of her dress. He smiled at her fondly, holding out a hand and bowed in a theatrical manner. 

'me lady would you mind gracing me with this dance' Her dainty hand grasped his gently. He led her to the dancefloor, people stopping their incessant wiggling that they called dancing to stare. 

'So close' from the movie Enchanted came on, the couples zealously finding their partners for a slow dance. 

'I've never danced like this before' Melody murmured softly as he brought her closer, settling a grounding hand onto her waist, the other grasping her hand. She set her free hand onto his shoulder, her other tightening it's grip on his.

'just follow my lead,ive got this handled sweetheart'he winked, twirling her. 

Gradually she grew more confident in her steps, finally looking up from her feet. She followed him step for steps easily , quickly getting the hang of it. Soon they were gaining quite the audience as they twirled and danced elegantly across the dancefloor. 

Tony knew that he was sold as soon as she looked up into his eyes with a radiant smile , her eyes sparkling with joy. He felt the familiar warmth spread into his chest. He knew now that he wanted to make her smile like that every day. If she would have him, he will be hers.

 

The fourth time he made her cry was through his reckless action of driving the nuke into the portal. 

As he drove the nuke near the portal Tony asked Jarvis to contact her. He would at least say good bye... he owe her that much. 

'Tony?' She asked shakily, he could heard the hitch in her breath. 'I-is you that is holding onto that nuke?' She murmured clearly sounding distressed. She was probably following the event of the battle on TV. 

'I ahh...I don't have a choice Doddy, millions of people will die if i don't' he managed to say, words heavy on his tongue. His chest constricted as he heard her whimper with barely contained sobs on the other end of the line. He tried to concentrate on the nuke, he musn't stray or millions of lives will be destroyed.

' no Tony, please, don't do this, there must be another way' She said, voice thick with grief. He held back his own sobs as she let out a loud heart-wrenching sob. ' please don't leave me...' 

'I-I'll find my way back to you sweetheart'he tried to promise, trying to make it believable, even if he didn't believe it himself. 

'promise me' she demanded, her voice strangely firm. 'Doddy I- promise me' she cut him off, clearly agitated.

'I-i promise' he said as he finally slipped unto the portal with the nuke. He took a deep breath at the sight infront of him. He had to shake himself in order to finally say the words that has been on his tongue for a long time now. 

'I love you' he confessed and just like that, as he let go of the nuke, the suit's alimentation cuts off, ending the call. 

 

The fifth time, he really hoped this one was the last one, because he hated making her cry. He didn't blame it on her being too emotional, more like blame himself for practically dying every 5 minutes, not that he could help it though. 

Everyone had left the premise aside from him and his Brucie Bear. 

'Sir, Miss Stalone has arrived to the tower' he promptly dropped the tool he had been holding with a curse, said tool narrowly avoiding hitting his foot. She was gonna tear him a new one that was for sure. 

Tony saw Bruce frown and took off his glasses, looking at the mechanic questionably. 

'she's my, she's my soulmate, one of them actually' He said, his wandering to the elevator every 5 seconds. Bruce's expression was a mix of understanding and sympathy. 

The door opened with a ding and in she came, like a bat outta hell. Now that seemed familiar...

'what the fuck Tony?!' She croaked quickly making his way to him, her pace brisk, her flip flops clacking loudly agaisnt her heels. She looked livid now,almost downright pissed. He had never seen her like this before. Normally she was always good-natured and mostly calm with a bit of a temper but he had never seen her so furious. 

'what were you thinking?!' She shouted hoarsely, smacking away his hand when he reached for her. He found himself gulping nervously and turned to Bruce for help,only to find that the Doctor had slipped away. It was probably for the best, they didn't need the Hulk in here. 

'S-sweetheart let me explain ' he tried, watching her pace infront of him like an angry lion. She did nicknamed herself Aslan because of how her hair looked when she blew dried them. 

'what is there to explain?!' She asked tersely, angry tears slowly making their way down her cheeks. 'tell me how the fuck was that even a solution?' 

Whoo he had almost forgot how much of a potty mouth she had.   
'Listen Doddy, there was no other way, I had to do it or everyone else would've of died' He tried to placate her, to call her logical side,but nearly whimpered when she cast her angry gaze on him. 

'their must of been another way Tony, fuck, did you really think this through?, Did you think how heartbroken i would be if you actually died?' She took a deep breath, chest stuttering with sobs, tears running down her cheeks, pearling at her chin. 

'Actually, I was doing you a favor...you wouldn't have to worry about my reckless ways anymore' He said, voice filled with self-deprication. She was probably the first to be relieved of him, having put up with him for 4 years already. She put up with his alcoholic tendencies, him being a sassy, reckless asshole and all he seemed good at with her is making her cry. 

He never saw the slap coming and it stung like a motherfucker. For such a small woman, she could pack one mean slap, he couldnt imagine if she ever punched him in the face.

His attention strayed from the stinging sensation when he felt plush lips claimed his. His heart soared as he reached and her pulled her closer to his body,one hand on the small of her back and the other weaving itself into her hair. 

The kiss was passionate, heartfelt and kind of wet. Not wet in that sort of way, more because she had been crying, the saltiness of her tears lingering on her lips. She clung to him, her fingers bunching up his shirt at his sides. 

They pulled away to take a breather. He felt her breath ghost over his mouth in soft puffs of warm air as she panted. 

He pulled her back to him, this time the kiss filled with teeth and tongue, far more ardent then the first. She went plient into his grasp, giving in to the passion. 

 

This wasnt how he wanted her first time to go but she seemed satisfied so he was happy with that.   
She had curled on her side around his head, him resting his head agaisnt her stomach. He nearly purred as ran her long delicate fingers into his hair. She gave the best head massage in the world, at least in his opinion. He was finally content. 

 

The only time she made him cry was when they stood in the rumbles that used to be his house in Malibu. It had been a rough couple of days or maybe month? He was glad that he came out victorious in the end , even if his girl now had the Extremis.

She had an arm wrapped his back and his had been around her waist. They looked over the ocean , the wind a soft whisper as it ruffled their hair. 

' I loved that house' She pouted,tucked her head underneath his chin, her other arm coming to wrap itself around his stomach. He brought her closer and gave a brief squeeze before kissing her hair. 

The house had meant very little to him, of course it held many memories but at least the persons he cared about were safe. The cars, the house , his suits, all meant nothing , all were only materialistic things that could be replaced. Pepper and Melody could never be replaced. 

' How- I swear if you ask me if I'm okay one last time, imma kick you' She cut him off mid sentence. 'I'm totally fine I already told you and besides, I have the antidote on me' She tried to reassures,showing the crystal like pendant around her neck, which if pressed a needle would dart out and she could rapidly inject the antidote.

'yes but... why did you keep it?' He frowned, anxiety clinging to his heart. He didn't like the idea of his girlfriend holding something so unstable in her blood. He didn't like the idea that his girlfriend could explode at any moment. 

She cupped his face into both her hands, her hazel meeting his chocolate brown. 

'because I hate feeling helpless, especially when you need me, like that I can protect you like you protect me' She said softly, running her thumb over his cheekbone, smiling as he kissed her palm and pressed their forehead together. 'your the best thing that has happened to me Tony, I can't afford to lose you' She whispered thickly. 

Tont breath caught in his throat. He never thought someone would say that to him ever. They often told him he was handsome, rich, an asshole. They wanted him but they didn't necessarily needed him. His little Doddy did, his Doddy needed him and he needed her, more then ever. 

A shaky breath escaped him , tears slipping down his cheeks agaisnt his will. He tried to hide his sniffle, Stark man didn't cry. He tried to pull away but Melody would have none of it, gripping his jacket tightly.   
She wiped away his tears , gently pecking his lips as he reached to cling to her. He buried his face into her hair , trying to will the tears away. She rubbed his back soothingly, giggling as he left whiskery kisses on her cheeks. Whispering how much she meant to him, how much he loved her. 

He wiped at his eyes with his sleeve when his crying episode was over, looking down at her with wide, what he assumed puppy eyes since she awed and caressed his stubbled cheeks. 

'you saw nothing, none of this happened okay?' He said pointing a finger at her , making her go cross eyed as she stared at it. She made motion of zipping her lips and gave him an innocent look which made him narrow his eyes in a non threatening manner. They both cracked up and smiled at each other,Tony gathering her into his arms again,pressing her into his side with a contented sigh. He bit his lip and reached into his pocket, taking out a small velvet box. She looked at it and up at him in surprise.   
'I-I wanted to give you a little something, for our first year, I don't remember when it exactly happened but yeah' he said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand. He cracked it open, revealing a iron man helmet in the form of a ring,topaz for the gold parts , ruby for the red and aquamarines for the 'eyes' . Maybe it hadnt been a good idea after all... thinking back to it, that seemed awfully narcisist to make his girl wear a ring with his face on it, well not his real face but you know. 

' I love it' she gushed, her happy tone breaking through his self-doubt. He blinked at her in surprise.  
'wait what?' he asked in confusion, taking in her happy grin.   
'i love it' She repeated, her wide grin still in place. He felt the tight knot of anxiety slowly unwind and he allowed himself to smile back. 

He carefully extracted the ring from it's slot and took her offered left hand and slid it onto her middle finger. He kissed her knuckles afterward and smiled. 

A promise for the future, wherever it led them but he knew that he will always be by her side.

**Author's Note:**

> http://www.elegantwoman.org/promise-ring-etiquette.html
> 
> Heres the reference I used for the promise ring thing :D 
> 
> I hope im not making Tony OOC if so please,please tell me, i like constructive critism 
> 
> And i have an inportant question for yall that will concern the later chapters of How to date a superhero err heroes. 
> 
> Sam Wilsonx Scott Lang or RhodeyxSam Wilson  
> I personally ship Sam and Scott for some reason but i wanted your opinion. :)


End file.
